Here in the Second Act
by galia-carrot
Summary: 7 years ago T'Pol left Enterprise after her time in the Expanse, she married Koss and eventually fell out of touch with her old crew mates, including Trip. Trip however never forgot her, and she never forgot him, even as the years passed each wondered what had become of the other. Then 7 years after parting, following a chance meeting at a coffee shop they fall back together...
1. Here In The Second Act

**Okay so here we are, I didn't expect to upload this fic so soon after finishing SWMTR but something just felt right. I don't know maybe it's the fact that I needed a pick me up tonight and this fic is absolutely adorable so I wanted to share it with you. I worked on this fic during April's Camp NaNoWriMo and I'm finishing up the last 4 chapters of it now so I thought today would be a good time to share it.**

 **Anyway I hope you like it, it's certainly a change of pace from SWMTR and is very different, but it's also death free so that's pretty nice.**

 **As usual I'd love to hear your thoughts on it and look forward to any reviews you leave!**

 **\- Galia**

* * *

Chapter 1

 _here in the second act i'm living in repair.  
strange how the heart adapts when its pieces disappear.  
and there, on page 28, i'm so tired of drying glue,  
i begin my grand attempt at building something new._

" _Page 28" by Sleeping At Last (Yearbook: August)_

Trip comes to a stop in front of the gym and turns back to look at Hoshi, she's just a few feet behind him and shortly after stops next to him, panting. The last six weeks have been strange, after nearly 10 years on Enterprise being back on Earth feels stranger than some of the alien world's he'd visited. Not seeing his friends daily had been an adjustment too, in fact he found the only one he was able to see daily to be Hoshi, the two of them had a standing evening run every day of the week.

"Not bad Lieutenant." Trip pants, a smile crossing his face. "I'm still winnin' though."

"It's not a race Commander." Hoshi rolls her eyes, stopping to catch her breath before finishing her response. "Besides you have longer legs than me, it's easier for you."

"Oh sure, that's it." Trip chuckles, wiping the sweat off his brow with one hand and reaching for his water bottle with the other. "Keep tryin' though, maybe you'll beat me next week."

"Might not be here next week." Hoshi chuckles, taking a swig from her water. "I'll find out if I got that position on the Intrepid on Friday, if I did I'll have to leave for more training on Monday."

"Well then looks like you'll just have to beat me tomorrow then." Trip teases.

"Looks like I will." Hoshi grins. "You picked an assignment yet?"

"No not yet, I'm gonna teach at STC for a semester or two I think." He says.

"You're looking at a promotion though aren't you?" Hoshi frowns.

"Yeah I mean, I guess I could." He scratches the back of his head. "To be honest with ya I didn't ever think of makin' Captain. Chief Engineer is about as high as I wanted to go." He admits.

"Really? I always thought you'd make a pretty good captain." Hoshi says, brushing her hair back.

"Yeah really, I took care of _Enterprise'_ s engine for ten years Lieutenant, that's the crown jewel in my career." He shrugs, picking up his water bottle and starting towards the building. "You said there was that cafe you liked?"

"Yeah the Hephaestus, it's a couple blocks." Hoshi nods. "You really don't want a ship of your own?"

"No ma'am I do not." Trip shakes his head. "Besides, I hear the Vulcan's have a Warp 7 program now, I was thinkin' of applyin' for that." He admits.

"Really?" Hoshi raises her eyebrows. "You on Vulcan?"

"Well I'm a damn good engineer ain't I?'' He says.

"I'm not denying that, I just thought you didn't like Vulcan." Hoshi shrugs. "And you don't speak any Vulcan."

"UT solves the language problem Lieutenant." Trip chuckles. "And what makes you think I don't like Vulcan." Hoshi bites her lip and raises her eyebrows, he know's where this conversation is about to go. "This ain't about T'Pol."

"Are you sure?" Hoshi asks.

"Yes I'm sure." Trip insists. "Now I ain't denyin' I'd like to find her but I'm not settin' out to ruin her marriage." He rolls his eyes.

"I didn't say that, it's just - well you've been a little caught up on her the last few years." Hoshi says.

"I am not caught up." He insists. "I've moved on."

"OKay, fine I'm sure you have." He can tell from her tone that she doesn't believe him, but at least she seems to drop that subject. "You know I bet she'd like to hear from you."

"I have to find her first." Trip points out.

"It shouldn't be too difficult, you said her husband was a prominent architect right?" Hoshi asks. "And she was with the High Command, someone will know where to find her."

"Yeah they will, I just hope it's not infringin' on her life or something by going and trying to contact her." Trip shrugs. "Her husband isn't real fond of me from what I could tell at the wedding."

"Trip it's been years, and T'pol is her own person, she can make decisions for herself." Hoshi says, stopping in front of a cafe. "This is it." She says.

Trip hops up the steps and notices a woman and two small boys, he opens the door for him.

"Thank you." She says in a quiet familiar tone, before continuing down the steps, the little boy next to her talking in Vulcan all the while.

Trip frowns and watches her go, her dark hair is longer then he remember and she definitely looked tired but she looks like T'Pol. He almost calls out but before he does Hoshi comes to stand next to him.

"That looked like T'Pol." Trip frowns.

"I think it was T'Pol." Hoshi says. "Did you know she was back on Earth?"

"No I didn't." He frowns. "Didn't know she had kids either."

"Maybe it wasn't her." Hoshi shrugs, going past him into the cafe.

Trip pauses a moment before going in, maybe it wasn't T'Pol, but it certainly _looked_ like T'Pol. His mind was racing, did she move back to Earth? When did she have kids? Was Koss here too?

"You coming?" Hoshi asks.

"Um, yeah." Trip mutters, turning around and going into the cafe after her. He's not sure if the woman was T'pol at all, but he's certainly going to make a point to come back here, just in case it was and just in case he sees her again.

* * *

T'Pol and her eldest son, Avarak exit the school building and walk into the cool San Francisco afternoon. Avarak has the leg of her pants clutched tightly in one hand and his big brown eyes look around. They'd only been on Earth a little over a month and her eldest son was still finding the bustle of life here to be over stimulating. She knew it would be best if they could pick up his younger brother and get home for a short nap before dinner.

" _Did you like your school mates_?" T'Pol asks, as they board the bus that will take them to the daycare down the street.

" _No Mother, they're not very kind to me."_ Her son's words come quietly as she takes a seat on the bus and lifts him onto her lap. " _The teacher only gives worksheets in English and the other students call me names because I don't understand."_

T'Pol strokes her son's hair and does her best to calm him through their bond. " _Your English will be as good as theirs is one day, for now simply ignore them, it's illogical to confront them. Simply study hard and you'll get there."_

Avarak lays his head against her chest and sighs his big brown eyes looking out the window. She can still sense some apprehension from him and she rests her cheek on the top of his soft brown curls. Then looks to the window where she can make out her son's reflection and it strikes her just how much he looks like his father. From the watery blue eyes to the curve of his nose he was Koss in every way. She runs her thumb over his chubby cheek gently, they'd always been her favorite feature on Koss, though Koss had lacked the innocence his round face portrayed.

" _Mother?"_ Avarak says quietly, sitting up and turning to face her on her lap. " _Mother, can we get lemonade at the Hephaestus?"_

" _We must to pick Kuvok up first, but then yes we can, we cannot stay and drink it though. We'll have to take it home."_ T'Pol says, standing up and putting Avarak on her hip as they get off the bus.

The daycare is only a block from the bus stop and T'Pol sets her older son down to walk, but he immediately grabs onto the sleeve of her shirt. Both children have been clingier than usual since their move to Earth, not that Avarak had been particularly independant to begin with. He'd always been the clingier of the children, crawling into bed with her and Koss even when he was well past the age where co-sleeping was appropriate. His behavior today made T'Pol think it was going to be one of those nights were bedtime was a battle. She runs a hand over his curls and walks up the steps to the day care.

Inside the teacher looks more than a little irritated. "There you are." she says.

"I do not believe I am late." T'Pol says, "Has something happened?"

"He had another accident today." The teacher says coldly, T'Pol looks over to where her youngest son, Kuvok sits on a mat, he's wearing the spare pair of pants she'd packed for him.

"I'm sorry," T'Pol says a little coldly. "He is only three, he hasn't been toilet trained very long."

"He doesn't seem toilet trained at all." The teacher snaps.

" _Kuvok, come here."_ T'Pol calls. Her younger son stands up and walks over to her, looking worried. " _Are you alright?"_

" _She's mad at me."_ The three year old mutters.

" _Why didn't you ask to go to the bathroom?"_ T'Pol asks.

" _I did, but I don't know in English."_ Kuvok whispers.

" _It's alright,"_ T'Pol says, " _Come, we'll get you home."_

"Here's his clothes." The teacher says, holding out a plastic bag. T'Pol takes it and wordlessly tucks the bag into Kuvok's backpack. She picks him up and carries him from the building, Avarak being pulled along at her side.

T'Pol makes a mental note to speak to the other teachers about making sure Kuvok gets taken to the bathroom regularly and to try to remember that he hasn't been speaking Vulcan very long, much less English. Maybe she should just find another daycare, this is why she wished the Vulcan compound made provisions for families, though she was certain she was the only Vulcan in San Francisco with a family.

She pushes open the door to the Hephaestus cafe and Avarak trots in in front of her, walking right up to the counter. They come here almost daily after T'Pol picks the children up, she's rather fond of the peppermint tea and the boys are both fond of the lemonade. Avarak turns to look at her, waiting on her to order for them.

"One peppermint tea and one lemonade," T'Pol says quietly, setting Kuvok down long enough to pay, though by the time she's tucking her wallet back in her bag he's doing his best to climb back up her.

She leads both boys to the back to wait for their order and rock's Kuvok gently in her arms. It's likely he didn't nap at daycare, he almost never does, preferring to lay quietly on his mat and sleep for an hour when they get home. He's not typically this clingy but having had a rough day T'Pol can sense his anxiety and makes a soft 'shh' noise to try to calm him.

Of the two boys Kuvok definitely looks more like her, as opposed to his brothers dark black hair, Kuvok's is a lighter brown. His eyes are hazel and he has her rather sharp features - unfortunately they suit him as well as they did T'Pol when she was a child, that is to say not very well. Despite being younger he'd always been more independent, likely because he was too young to remember her and Koss' divorce when it had happened.

Oh yes, it's very likely Kuvok doesn't even remember his father clearly, they haven't seen him in nearly a year since he moved to the city of Gol. Though by human standards the divorce had been a clean one Vulcan's didn't often divorce - especially after having children - but it hadn't been for lack of trying. She'd known he was having an affair and had tried to work it out, when he wouldn't she decided divorce would be better for all involved. In all honesty she had to admit to herself, she'd been in the marriage mostly for the children at that point. Had she not gotten pregnant soon after the wedding she'd likely have returned to _Enterprise_ and dissolved the marriage as soon as she could.

Despite the less than stellar circumstances she doesn't think it's the divorce that did the damage so much as their father's abandonment. He'd given her sole custody without much of a fight and moved to be with his mistress as soon as he could, give that the family ties between Vulcans were generally very strong both boys had taken their father's abandonment very hard.

It had been part of her decision to move to Earth in the beginning of the previous month. She'd felt that getting the children off Vulcan and away from their father would weaken the bond between their father and the two of them and make it easier on the two of them. Koss had had little problem with it.

The barista calling out their order pulls her from her thoughts. She hands the lemonade to Avarak and takes her tea, then starts towards the door.

As she's exiting a man pulls the door open, she looks at him for a moment "Thank you." She says, stepping off down the stairs past him and the woman.

She doesn't look back but she knows the man and the woman, her heart speeds up, Trip and Hoshi. She knew Enterprise had been decommissioned last month but she'd thought all her old friends would've already taken Assignments elsewhere. She's not sure why but something in the back of her mind tells her Trip recognized her too.

" _Mother?"_ Avarak asks. " _Do you know them?"_

" _I'm not sure little one."_ T'Pol says quickly blocking out her thoughts. " _Come, let's get you and your brother home, then you can share your drink before dinner."_ She reaches down, takes his hand and starts towards their bus stop.


	2. Everybody Loses

**I'm so sorry for the late update, some really bad stuff happened on Friday and I've only just started to process it. It's like, 1 am here, so I'm not gonna say much.**

 **Let me know what you think, I love hearing what you think.**

 **\- Galia**

* * *

Chapter 2

 _"One that's five and one that's three_  
 _Been two years since he left me_  
 _Good to know that you got free_  
 _That town I know was keeping you down on your knees_  
 _These bruises make for better conversation_  
 _Loses the vibe that separates_  
 _It's good to let you in again_  
 _You're not alone in how you've been_  
 _Everybody loses, we all got bruises_  
 _We all got bruises"_

 _\- "Bruises" by Train_

* * *

The next day Trip decides he'll have to cancel on Hoshi, he'd been up most of the night thinking about T'Pol, and if it really could be her. When had she had kids? Where was her husband? Was it really her? These things had been nagging him most of the night, and so it was with those reasons he'd left work early and called Hoshi.

"Hey Hosh, look I'm not going to make our run today." He says, starting down the street towards the cafe.

"Are you okay?" Hoshi asks, her worried tone not phasing him today.

"Yeah I'm fine, I just can't make it." Trip says.

"Are you going back the the Hephaestus?" Hoshi asks.

"Yeah Hoshi, I am." He says. "I have to know okay?"

"Trip, what are the chances she's going back there?" Hoshi sighs, he can hear the concern in her voice and briefly wishes she could see him roll his eyes.

"I don't know Hoshi, but I have to try." He says. "I don't even know if it's her but if I don't try I'll never be able to get past it, I tried getting past it once, it didn't work. I have to try again okay."

"Trip what if it's not her? Why can't you just write her a letter, o-or look her up?" Hoshi sighs. "Trip I think this is crazy."

"Look, if it's not her I'll just look her up that simple." Trip sighs, exasperatedly. "I have to go okay, I'm here, I'll see you tomorrow." He hangs up the phone and puts it back in his pocket, pulling open the door to the coffee shop.

He looks around and grins, she's seated near the window, sipping a cup of tea and there's no doubt in his mind that it's T'Pol. Her hair has grown and now sits just past her shoulders, her hazel eyes are fixed on a point in the distance, absorbed in her thoughts. He feels about fifteen years old again, working up the courage to ask the pretty girl in the lunchroom to the dance.

She doesn't seem to notice him yet so he crosses to the bar to order before talking to her, he's never been one for coffee shops so he sticks to black coffee. It comes faster then he thought but he takes his time going over to where T'Pol sits.

"T'Pol?" He asks, she looks over to him and recognition flashes through her beautiful hazel eyes.

"Trip." She says quietly. "I had hoped you'd return."

"Yeah, I um - did you recognize me yesterday?" He asks, sitting down across from her.

"Yes, I did." T'Pol says, raising her eyebrows slightly. "I apologize for not saying anything, I had the children with me, and I wasn't sure you recognized me."

"I did, it's been a long time, but I did." Trip smiles.

"Seven years." T'Pol says, nodding.

"So um, what brings you to San Francisco, a bit far from the high command ain't it?" Trip chuckles.

"I'm not with the High Command, or the Science Academy." T'Pol says, setting her tea down, he catches a whiff of it, peppermint, it's been her favorite for as long as he's known her. "I'm with Starfleet, I took a position here at the beginning of last month. I assume you've taken a new position?"

"Um, not yet actually." Trip admits. "I'm teaching for a semester because I ain't real sure what I want to do permanently."

"I assumed you'd be up for a promotion?" T'Pol asks, raising her tea to her lips and sipping it again.

"I am but I don't really think I want to a promotion." Trip scratches the back of his head. "I Kinda always saw bein' Chief Engineer as being the top of the ladder for me. The crown jewel in my career I suppose."

"I think you'd make a fine Captain." T'Pol says.

"Yeah that's what Hoshi said," Trip shrugs. "It's just not something I think I'd like, I've also thought of applying for the Warp 7 program on Vulcan."

"You have?" T'Pol raises both her eyebrows. "Well I've no doubt you'd do well there, though I believe you'd have to learn Vulcan first."

"Well, obviously but I figured I'd give it a shot ya know? What's the harm in tryin'?" He shrugs. "So um, you're back with starfleet, I thought Koss wanted to stay on Vulcan."

"He did stay on Vulcan." T'Pol says, pursing her lips ever so slightly.

"So it's just you here then?" Trip frowns, that didn't sound very Vulcan to him, from what he understood was that the family unit travelled together.

"Me and my children." T'Pol confirms.

"And Koss was fine with this?" Trip asks cautiously, he doesn't want to pry but he's curious as to why she left her husband behind now when she wasn't willing to leave him seven years ago. She didn't have children then, and something told him she wouldn't have split the family up just for work.

"It was not his decision." T'Pol says. "We divorced two years ago."

"Oh, um, I'm sorry." Trip says, he wasn't sure what he was expecting but it certainly wasn't that. His understanding of Vulcan marriage was that divorce was rare and frowned upon, especially where children were involved.

"It was two years ago, besides the marriage lasted longer then I thought." She says turning her head to one side slightly. "The boys and I came here last month when I took the position with Starfleet."

"Oh, how old are they?" Trip asks. "They in school now or somethin'?" He doesn't see any children in the coffee shop at all so they can't be here.

"Avarak is, he's my eldest. He's five years old." T'Pol says. "The younger one is only three, his name is Kuvok. He's at daycare at the moment."

"Five huh?" Trip grins. "That's what, kindergarten?"

"In human school yes," T'Pol nods. "Vulcan children don't typically go to school until closer to 7 years of age, unfortunately I couldn't find a human daycare that would take him all day at his age."

"How's he likin' it?" Trip asks.

"He's not." T'Pol admits. "He struggles with the lessons, his English is still lacking but he has an aid."

"Why not send him to school on the Vulcan compound?"

"They don't have a school, the High Command does not currently station families at the Embassy on Earth, to my knowledge my children are the only Vulcan children in the city." T'Pol explains. "They'll adjust, it's still very new to them and I think that's the root of some of their struggles."

"If they're anything like you I'm sure they'll be fine." Trip assures, taking a swig of his coffee. "So what are you doin' with Starfleet exactly?"

"Well, because of the children I don't have an active duty position," T'Pol explains. "I'm teaching physics and chemistry at STC currently, it allows for a more flexible schedule and I'm able to pick them both up from school on time."

"That's good, boys need their Momma." Trip grins.

"Mine certainly do." T'Pol nods. "They've both been somewhat clingy since moving here and I didn't want to leave them with a nanny all day - besides Vulcans don't usually use nanny's to begin with. I had one as a child but not when I was that young."

"I was a latchkey kid." Trip grins.

"A what?" T'Pol raises an eyebrow.

"Both my parents worked when I was little, my brother was six years older then me and he used to pick me and my sister up from school - first grade and kindergarten respectively - and we'd walk home, he'd unlock the door and then we were alone until 5-6 o'clock when Momma got home." He shrugs.

"That would be considered very strange for Vulcan children." T'Pol says. "I wasn't left home on my own until I was 14. Though my mother had a tendency to be a bit over bearing."

"It was just the way life was for us." Trip shrugs. "Daddy laid pipe all over the state so he wasn't home to watch us, and layin' pipe doesn't bring in a whole lot. We never minded, pretty sure Momma didn't love comin' home to us runnin' around covered in mud though." He grins.

T'Pol is about to speak when a beeping noise comes from her phone, she glances at it. "My apologies, I must go pick up the children."  
"Oh, um," Trip says. "Can we meet again sometime?"

T'Pol reaches for a napkin and pulls out a pen. "Of course, this is my phone number, call any time after 8 - the boys ought to be in bed by then - and perhaps we could set up lunch." She holds out the napkin to him and stands up.

Trip looks at the napkin, taking it in his hands. "Okay, talk to ya then I suppose." He grins, T'Pol turns to leave and Trip folds the napkin carefully and tucks it in his wallet.

* * *

T'pol doesn't like to rush out on Trip like that but she really does need to pick up the boys, Avarak will panic if she's even five minutes late and she'd already stayed longer than intended. She'd suspected that she would which is why she'd set the alarm, seven years on and it's still so easy to lose track of time when she's talking to Trip.

She's just walking up the steps to the school when the bell signifying the end of the day rings, thankfully her son's classroom is just a few feet from the door. As soon as the door opens he comes flying out of the room into her arms.

"Avarak." T'Pol says. "Avarak are you alright?" Her son is clinging to her, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist.

"Mother I don't want to go to school here anymore." Avarak exclaims.

T'Pol picks him up and starts back towards the entrance of the building. "Why not?"

"Because the children here are mean." He says, wrapping his arms around her neck and hiding his face on her shoulder.

"Avarak, look up at me when you speak." T'Pol says, Avarak looks up from her neck, his lower lip sticking out slightly. "And stop pouting."

"I said I don't want to go here because the children here are mean." Avarak repeats, wiping the pout off of his face and blinking up at here. "Emily called me stupid because my English is bad."

"Is Emily the same child who bit you last week?" T'Pol asks.

"No, that was Merri, her sister." Avarak mutters.

"I will speak with your teacher when I drop you off tomorrow." T'Pol assures him, turning towards the bus stop. She was beginning to think she'd have to speak to the head of the school and the parents of these two little girls at this point. Though she typically believed in letting children handle their own squabbles it was starting to get a little out of hand and Avarak didn't seem particularly inclined to stand up for himself.

Boarding the bus T'Pol sits in the first free seat she sees and sets Avarak on her lap facing her. He leans against her chest and sighs.

"I'm tired mother." He mutters, rubbing his eyes.

"You can lay down when we get home." T'Pol assures, stroking his hair gently, at least she's been able to calm him down, he'd been teetering close to having a tantrum and T'Pol was not equipped to deal with that today.

Avarak is quiet for the remainder of the bus ride, when they get off the bus and T'Pol sets him down he whimpers and reaches for her. A stern look is enough to correct the behavior and quiet him down, he instead decides to hold on to the sleeve of her shirt as they walk into the daycare building.

T'Pol is relieved to find that this child hasn't been having a terrible day, in fact Kuvok is curled up on a bean bag chair snoring lightly.

"Is he alright?" T'Pol asks, she'd never known Kuvok to nap at daycare but she'll take it after dealing with Avarak's bad day.

"He's fine." His teacher smiles. "He had a good day today, didn't nap but fell asleep on his own."

"He's always been good about putting himself down for a nap." T'Pol says. "I'll have to wake him unfortunately." T'Pol has never liked to wake the children when they were sleeping but she had to get him home somehow. She crosses over to the bean bag chair he's fallen asleep on and touches his shoulder lightly. "Kuvok, it's mother. You must wake now."

Kuvok whimpers and opens his eyes. "Mother I want to sleep."  
"I know you do but we must go home now. You may continue your nap there if you wish." T'Pol says, Kuvok sits up sleepily and holds out his arms. T'Pol picks him up and takes his backpack from the hook, she motions for Avarak to follow and walks out of the room quickly.

By the time they get to the street again Kuvok is sitting up on her hip and rubbing his eyes, his dark hair messy from sleep. T'Pol can tell Avarak isn't content with his little brother being carried but he knows better than to complain about the arrangement, being the oldest he's more then capable of walking.

Rather then take two tired children on the bus T'Pol hails a cab and usher's Avarak in before getting in herself.

"Bay View Apartment complex please." T'Pol says, closing the door behind her. Kuvok stays on her lap and Avarak leans against her side, both boys are sleepy and while part of her hopes they'll nap for an hour at home another part of her wants them to stay awake. If they stay awake she's guaranteed to have them asleep by their 7:30 bedtime, that way if Trip calls they'll already be asleep.

The drive, though brief returns Kuvok to his state of slumber and T'Pol has to get out of the cab clumsily as she tries not to wake him. Avarak trails a few feet behind as she walks into the building and presses the elevator button.

"Avarak," She says. "Hurry up we haven't got all afternoon."

"Sorry mother." He says, picking up his pace and entering the elevator with her.

She puts Kuvok down in her bed and Avarak shuffles into his bedroom to lie down as well, she peers in on him after getting Kuvok settled, he's asleep. Though she really should prepare the evening meal T'pol reaches instead for her book, deciding to take just a half an hour to herself to finish her chapter.

Unfortunately her inclination had been right, when bedtime came neither boy was very tired and it proved a struggle for her to get both of them into bed. Avarak wanted to read and Kuvok decided he'd rather play with his toys then stay in bed.

"Kuvok, I said no." T'Pol says, taking the toy away and carrying him back into bed. "You may read a book quietly but you may not play with toys." She sets him back in bed and picks up the toy bin.

"Mother." Kuvok whines.

"Kuvok, I am taking these with me. You may have them back tomorrow afternoon. Now I don't want to hear a sound from this bedroom until 6:30 tomorrow. Understand?" She says firmly.

"Yes mother." Kuvok mutters, reaching for a picture book and rolling over grumpily.

"Goodnight." T'Pol says, turning off the light again and carrying the toys out into the living room.

She looks at the clock, 8:01, hoping the boys will stay in bed the remainder of the night she goes into the kitchen and turns on the tea kettle. Once her tea has finished brewing she settles back into her chair with her book, trying to focus on it until Trip calls.


	3. The Signs

**Here we are with Chapter 3, on time for once.**

 **This chapter is kind of slow moving but does bring some important things to light as far as Koss and T'Pol's relationship goes. The story does pick up the pace after about chapter 5, it's just the first few chapters are spent establishing the situation and the beginning of everything.**

 **Please leave a review as I really enjoy hearing your thoughts and more often then not they make my week!**

 **\- Galia**

* * *

Chapter 3

 _I was young so I forgot_  
 _Which was my place and which was not_  
 _Thought I had a good shot_  
 _I took it right in my eye_

 _Look ahead, look behind_  
 _Take another, I don't mind_  
 _I, oh, I, oh_

 _Follow the signs right back to you_  
 _Back to you, back to you_  
 _I know they wind right back to you_  
 _Back to you_

 _"Back To You" by Twin Forks_

* * *

Trip had spent the rest of the afternoon and evening waiting for 8pm to come, by 7:45 he finds himself pacing back and forth, unable to focus on the work he'd started. He doesn't want to seem overeager and wanted to make himself wait until 8:15 at the latest, so he decides to make himself dinner while he waits.

As he's slipping the frozen pizza into the oven his mind turns back to T'Pol for the millionth time today. Mostly his mind goes back to the fact that she's divorced and it didn't really sound like the separation had been on good terms. Maybe he's imagining things but she'd seemed to have missed him too - if Vulcans miss people that is. He looks back up at the clock 8:05, he could technically call now but he really doesn't want to seem overeager, she might be divorced but she still has two little boys.

The thought of T'Pol as a mother had never really occurred to him, in fact he seemed to recall her having a dislike for children in general. He assumes it's different when they're your own kids, but he has to wonder what Koss did to get her to agree to having them in the first place. It must've been something because the other T'Pol in the expanse had told him he'd spend nearly 5 years convincing her to have Lorian.

The timer pulls him out of his thoughts, his pizza is ready and it's 8:15. He picks up the phone and presses the contact he'd made for her. She picks up almost immediately and he can't help but grin at that.

"Hello?" T'Pol's voice says.

"Hey T'Pol, it's Trip." He says setting the cooking sheet with the pizza on it on top of the stove and closing the oven door.

"Oh, hello Trip." T'Pol says, she almost sounds tired over the phone.

Trip puts the oven mit on the counter and walks over to the couch, leaving the pizza to cool for a few minutes. "So um, how's the rest of your day been?" He says awkwardly, though he's spent all day thinking about her he hasn't actually thought of what he'd say to her once he got to talking to her.

"It's been…" She pauses. "Long."

"That good huh?" Trip chuckles.

"Well, Avarak had a difficult day at school and I've had to make an appointment to speak with his teacher." She explains.

"Ya have huh?" Trip frowns. "He okay?"

"There's a set of twins in his class, they enjoy picking on him. Last week one of them bit him and this week the other is mocking him for his poor English." T'Pol says, he can almost hear the disapproving head tilt over the phone.

"Damn, that's harsh." Trip frowns. "The teacher ain't talked to 'em"

"I believe the parents may be the issue here, but I was hoping the teacher could provide some support in the matter." She explains. "If this was Vulcan both children would be severely punished."

"They're five year old's T'Pol." Trip chuckles.

"And they'd have been suspended if this was Vulcan." T'Pol says matter-of-factory.

"That's a little harsh for kid stuff." Trip frowns.

"They're causing emotional distress, it is not harsh, if the behavior is allowed to continue it will only get worse." She insists. "Any how, I've decided to find an English class for him to take, the one the school provides is good but three hours a week really isn't enough."

"He's only five, doesn't he just pick it up in class?" Trip asks.

"To a degree, but I believe it would give him more confidence if he was improving faster." T'Pol says. "Confidence is already something he lacks."

"Your kid lacks confidence?" Trip chuckles.

"He's also Koss' child, and yes, he's rather… shy." T'Pol says. "His brother on the other hand is typically rather outgoing, almost too out going most of the time."

"A troublemaker?" Trip chuckles. "Most little brothers are."

"I suppose you could say that. More like he's lacking in the self preserving anxieties that keep him from running up to strangers." T'Pol says. "He usually is anyway, he's been clingier since the move but I suspect that will change."

"Kids are adaptable, they'll come around." Trip assures.

"I certainly hope so, it's been a difficult couple of years on them." T'Pol says.

"I'm sure it has." He says. "So have they seen their dad since the move?"

"They haven't seen him since the divorce." T'Pol says quietly.

"Jesus," Trip breathes, running a hand through his hair. "What kind of guy doesn't see his kids for two years?"

T'Pol is quiet for so long he almost worries she's hung up, but then she says. "The same sort who can have an affair while his wife is pregnant."

"Damn T'Pol." He breathes, not really sure how to respond to that. "I'm sorry, he didn't really seem like the sort to, well to do that."

"You didn't know him very well." She says a little coldly.

"I guess I really didn't did I?" Trip scratches the back of his head and sighs. He'd never been fond of Koss but he'd thought that had more to do with Koss being married to T'pol then it did anything actually being wrong with Koss.

"We argued over him seeing the kids but I wasn't going to allow them to live with him and he moved to Gol shortly after the divorce." T'Pol says. "Kuvok was still nursing and Koss didn't really put up much of a fight to begin with."

"I didn't think Vulcans abandoned their kids - though I didn't think they had affairs either." Trip admits.

"He didn't abandon them completely, he calls regularly, but it would be nice if he'd have seen them." He can hear her run a hand through her hair. "The affair is a bit out of the norm for bonded pairs, but Koss and I never bonded."

"Really? But you have two kids…" Trip frowns.

"Be that as it may, sex isn't what bonds couples." T'Pol says. "Though physical touch helps both parties have to be receptive to the bond, and admittedly I never was. Perhaps that's what drove him to have the affair, I never asked, simply filed for the divorce."

"Now hang on." Trip frowns. "It ain't your fault. If he decided he wanted to sleep with someone else instead of try to make it work with you that's on him. Not you."

"Trip, drop it." She says, clearly the conversation had hit a nerve, but it wasn't really his place to begin with.

"OKay," Trip says. "Does the Vulcan compound offer English classes for kids?" Trip asks, trying to turn the conversation back to something they were both more comfortable with.

"The compound doesn't offer any services for children." T'Pol says. "I'm hoping to find a teacher who speaks Vulcan as well, but that's likely going to be difficult."

"Aside from Hoshi I ain't sure I know of anyone else who speaks both English and Vulcan." Trip admits, he assumes if anyone did they're probably in Starfleet anyway. "You might be out of luck on that one.

"I may but it won't hurt to try." T'Pol points out. "Besides it would keep him busy in the evenings, he doesn't have homework and I don't believe that it's good for him to sit idle all evening."

"He's five, I'm sure he entertains himself at least some of the time." Trip says.

"He does, but I think more interaction would be better for him, and it might bring him out of his shell a bit." T'Pol says. "I should be going though, it's late."

Trip looks up at the clock, it's 9:30, hardly late but they've been talking more then an hour and she has two kids he reminds himself, she must be tired. "Okay, um I wanted to ask you something."

"Yes?" T'Pol says.

"Do you want to come to lunch on Monday?" He asks, trying to mask the nerves he's feeling.

She's quiet for a moment, as though considering his offer and then she says; "Yes, I would. Where should we meet?"

"Um, how about I pick you up outside your office, there's a restaurant near STC we could go to." Trip grins.

"Very well, I typically have lunch around noon, does that work for you?" She asks.

"Yeah, noon. Just send me your office number and I can pick you up at noon." He offers.

"Office 423." T'Pol says. "Good night Trip."

"Night T'Pol." He says, she hangs up a few seconds later and Trip sets the phone down. He was having lunch with T'Pol, it wasn't a date - at least he hadn't meant it that way - but he fully intended to ask her on one if Monday went well.

Trip stands up and stretches, he needs to get a shower before writing up tomorrow's worksheet. As he shuffles towards the bedroom he spots the frozen pizza he made for dinner, he left it for so long that it had long since gone cold. Grinning broadly he shakes his head and mutters to himself. "That woman still manages to make me forget everything else."

* * *

After T'Pol hangs up she gets up to brew a cup of her favorite lavender tea, the conversation had gone on longer then she'd intended, but Trip still had the ability to make her lose track of time at a rather alarming rate. As she leans against the counter and watches the pot absently her mind turns to the topics of conversation. She hadn't intended to tell Trip that much about Koss, that he'd had an affair while she was pregnant with Kuvok, that she'd never bonded with him or that he'd essentially walked out on her and the boys, and yet she'd felt very comfortable doing so.

10 years ago when she first set foot on Enterprise and Trip first walked into her life she'd never expected he'd be the one she'd find herself speaking to about Koss, but even then he'd been easy to talk to. He just had a way of inserting himself into her life that she hadn't expected and it was a skill he still seemed to possess.

The kettle whistling pulls her from her thoughts and she rushes to pull it off the stove before the noise wakes one of the boys. She curls her feet under her as she sits back down in her arm chair and her mind turns back to Trip, did he just asked her on one of the romantic outings humans called a date? And did she agree to it?

The thought alarms her somewhat, but not in the sense she'd have expected. Mostly in the sense that she'd been so forthright about agreeing to something like this, and that she didn't regret it. Of course Trip hadn't said it was a date, but would he? Would he expect her to know without having to say?

'He probably would' she thinks. 'He never has been the best about realizing others don't understand his social norms.'

She decides to wait and see how he behaves on the lunch. She's not opposed to the idea of a romantic outing with him, it has been two years since her divorce - and even longer since she's had anything resembling what Trip called a 'date' - perhaps it's time to give it a try again.

Besides it wasn't like she hadn't thought about him, even while she was married she used to wonder what it would've been like if she'd given Trip more of a chance when she'd had the option. She would admit too to thinking about him even when things were decent between her and Koss, though she had always assumed that was for a certain more primal reason then she'd willingly admit to. It was a bit of a shock to discover that the desire for a more intimate relationship with her friend and former coworker were still very much present.

She pushes these things out of her mind and looks up at the time, it's getting closer to 10 o'clock now, standing up she takes her tea and her book into her bedroom. She turns on the light to discover her Kuvok has crawled in her bed without her noticing and now lays sprawled in the middle of it. She pulls back the blankets and gently moves him over to the side. She turns off the overhead lamp and only leaves the lamp on the night stand on, to illuminate her book.

She's read a few pages when she feels a small body scooting close to her, Kuvok's hazel eyes look up sleepily at her as he cuddles close.

"I hope I did not wake you my child." T'Pol says softly, running her fingers over her son's hair.

"No mother." His sleepy voice mutters, his eyes shut again and his Breathing becomes deep and even. He must've sensed her presence in the room and woken briefly, it's not unusual for him to do so these days, though Avarak is usually the one in her bed.

T'Pol finishes off the chapter of her book and turns off the light, laying down in bed and pulling Kuvok close to her, she used to lay like this when he was a baby and still sleeping in the bed with her every night. Koss didn't much care for the children being in their bed but he wasn't the one who had to get up to feed them four times a night. She'd typically only allowed it while they were nursing but now that she's alone she occasionally allows Kuvok and Avarak to sleep in her bed if they come in at night, it's easier than fighting with them.

She falls asleep with Kuvok curled against her.


	4. Hit or Miss

**This week has been emotionally draining on a lot of levels, but I'm kind of figuring that's the new normal at this point. I did manage to update on time and should continue to do so.**

 **In news I do go back to university on the 28th so while updates will remain regular I won't be able to respond to as many comments as often or as fast as I have previously.**

 **Chapter 4 is a tad bit shorter then I'd have liked but it serves it's purpose, which is to introduce Trip slowly into T'Pol's new world. Once again if you have any questions or just want to leave a review that would be great! I love hearing from you guys, it seriously makes my day most of the time.**

 **\- Galia**

* * *

Chapter 4

 _One by one the knots we've tied will come undone._  
 _Like picking locks, we'll sow our seeds beneath the sun._  
 _Our accomplice is the rain,_  
 _With patience, that of saints_

 _It grows and grows,_  
 _Our home sweet home._

-From the Ground Up by Sleeping At Last

* * *

Trip had been waiting all weekend for this lunch date and when Monday rolls around her finds himself more nervous then he'd anticipated. That morning he spends almost half an hour trying to decide what to wear before realizing he'll have to come in uniform anyway. His unnecessary indecisiveness leaves him having to rush to get out the door upon realizing he's running late.

As he's walking out the door his phone rings, he checks the contact, T'Pol. He answers it as he's skipping down the stairs two at a time in an attempt to make the next bus.

"Hey T'Pol, what's up?" He asks, pushing the door open and stepping out onto the street.

"Trip, I am very sorry to call on such short notice." T'Pol says, she sounds sniffly and sick.

"It's fine." Trip says. "You okay?"

"Unfortunately that is why I am calling." T'Pol says. "Kuvok and I seem to have caught a head cold, he's having to stay home from daycare as he has a fever, I will not be able to attend our planned lunch."

Trip's heart sinks, he'd been looking forward to having lunch with T'Pol this afternoon, but it's not like she can control having a sick kid at home. "Oh, I'm sorry about the sick kid. It's fine about lunch we can reschedule."

"I really am sorry." T'Pol insists, "I would like to reschedule, perhaps I can call later in the week when he's well?" She sounds exhausted and it gives Trip an idea, both to help her out and to be able to see her today.

"That's fine with me." Trip smiles. "You want me to bring you and the kid some soup at lunch time?"

T'Pol hesitates. "Would it be too much trouble?"

"Course not," He grins, "You're sick, you got a kid to take care of. I'll bring somethin' from the Vulcan compound by."

"Thank you Trip, it would be helpful." She admits. "I will send you my address, Kuvok may be napping so don't ring the bell, knock."

"Got it." Trip grins. "I'll see ya around noon." He hangs up the phone and jogs the rest of the way to the bus stop, getting there just in time to catch the bus to work. As he's taking a seat he hears himself receive the message with T'Pol's address.

605 A, Building C, River View Apartments, Bay Street.

Trip is once again stunned, she's less then a mile away from him. She's been here 6 whole weeks, working in the same building as him and living less then a mile away and yet he never saw her before Thursday. He shakes his head it seems too strange to be true, every day he was in the same building as T'Pol, and until Hoshi took him for coffee he never saw her or even heard her name. He'll have to remember to thank Hoshi, if she hadn't taken him for coffee he could've missed her all together.

He wonders if she'll accept his offer for a date, it's been two years now that she's been divorced, in his mind that's enough time. What about hers though? She has two kids, maybe she's not ready for another relationship. He'd understand if she wasn't, her kids had to be her first priority and he didn't want to infringe on it. Still, he hopes she'll accept, because he's spent 6 years wondering what could've been. Had she been wondering too? It didn't sound like she'd been very happy in her marriage to Koss, maybe she'd been thinking about him too.

He's starting to drift off into a daydream of what could've been when his stop comes up, he nearly misses it but gets out the door at the last second and is to work just in the nick of time.

Lunch seems to take twice as long to arrive today as it usually does, he rushes out as soon as his lunch begins and takes the bus to the Compound, it's just a few blocks away but the driver seems confused when he gets off at the compound stop. Trip ignores him and walks onto the compound. The Vulcan gate guard seems confused too, but neither of them are as confused as the worker at the restaurant, he asks four times if Trip is sure he wants 3 orders of Plomeek soup to take home with him.

Once he manages to convince the employee that he was serious he hops in a cab and gives him T'Pol's address.

* * *

T'Pol has just put Kuvok in his bed when she hears the knock on the door, he remembered to knock, the last thing she needs Kuvok to be woken. She already has a headache from this head cold and she doesn't really feel up to dealing with a clingy child again. She ties the fluffy robe around her a little tighter and answers the door, Trip is standing there grinning and holding three take out cartons of soup.

"My apologies for the state of the of the house, I haven't had much chance to clean up." She says as Trip steps in and removes his shoes. T'Pol is suddenly very aware of the fact that two days worth of dishes are in the sink and there's a pile of clean laundry she has yet to fold on the couch. She leads Trip over to the dining table where he sets the soup down and looks around.

"It's fine," Trip assures. "You should see my place, it's worse and I ain't got kids."

She figures it's probably true but she still doesn't like the mess of the place. "Kuvok is asleep, I'll put his in the refrigerator for him." She moves to take one of the containers but Trip stops her.

"I'll do it," He offers. "You eat, you're sick too."

"I'm an adult, the only reason I'm home today at all is because daycare won't take him if he's running a fever." T'Pol points out, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah but you have help for another," He checks his watch. "42 minutes, so sit down and eat, I'll get a handle on some of the dishes okay?"

T'Pol nods and takes one of the few clean bowls from the cupboard and sits at the table with her soup. Trip moves over to the sink and begins washing the dishes, she hadn't really expected him to stay, muchless to help her with cleaning up.

"You are aware you don't have to do that?" She asks, sipping the soup carefully as it's still quite hot.

"I know," Trip shrugs. "But you got two kids, one of them is sick, you're sick and I'm not and I'm here. I'll help while I can at least."

T'Pol considers this for a moment. "Thank you," She says. "It really does mean something that you would help, you hardly know my family."

"I'd like to." He says.

T'Pol goes quiet, considering what he means by that. Does he really want to get to know her children? Could it mean that his desire for a relationship went deeper then knowing her? She eats quietly for a moment until she hears a small voice.

"Mother," Kuvok mutters, he's standing near the wall separating the living room from the kitchen. "Who's that man."

T'Pol glances over at Trip, he's looking at Kuvok curiously as well. "Kuvok this is Trip, my… colleague."

"Oh," Kuvok mutters, crossing over to T'Pol and climbing on her lap. "Is there soup for me?"

"Yes there is," T'Pol says taking another carton of soup from the table. Trip brings another bowl and spoon over and pours it into the bowl while Kuvok cuddles closer to T'Pol. "Thank you." She says to Trip, giving the spoon to Kuvok.

"Thank you." Kuvok says to Trip, he allows himself to be turned around on T'Pol's lap so he can eat his soup over the table and T'Pol can continue hers. T'Pol senses her son's uncertainty at Trip's presence and does her best to calm him by keeping one arm around his waist to hold him steady on her knee. "Mother when will Rakky be home?"

"Your brother will be home at 3:30." T'Pol says, it's the first time her oldest has ever ridden the bus home and she admits to worrying about him some. He was an awkward child and sitting next to a strange child on the bus likely wouldn't make him particularly comfortable.

Trip doesn't say anything but she can sense some unease from him as well, perhaps this wasn't such a good idea after all. He continues to work on the dishes in silence, evidently doing his best to ignore the stairs of her son's eyes.

"Trip?" She says.

"Yeah?" He asks turning to her.

"You really do not have to stay." She says,

"T'Pol," Trip says, smiling at her. "It's fine, really, however I don't want to make -" He looks at Kuvok, evidently having forgotten his name.

"Kuvok."

"Kuvok, I don't want to make him upset, so if you need me to leave I will." Trip says.

"Mother…" Kuvok mutters, having heard his name in their conversation. T'Pol gives him a scolding look for interrupting and resting her hand on his back again.

"You're not upsetting him, he gets clingy when he's ill." T'Pol explains, that much is true, if Kuvok had been perfectly healthy he'd hardly have paid any attention to Trip. Kuvok turns back around and wraps his arms around her, but continues watching Trip carefully. "He's usually quite independent, his brother tends to be the clingy one."

"You mentioned that, the older one is Avarak right?" Trip says, drying the last of the dishes and putting him in the cupboard, he turns around and leans against the counter watching her.

"Yes, Avarak." T'Pol confirms, finishing the last of her soup and rubbing Kuvok's back gently to comfort him. "He's taking the bus for the first time today so no doubt he'll be clingy when he gets home as well." She tries her best not to sound defeated, while she's always struggled to meet her children's emotional and physical needs while ill she's also been doing it alone most of their lives.

"I should get going." Trip smiles. "You gonna be okay?"

"I've been their mother for five years." T'Pol says, raising her eyebrows at him briefly, still part of her wishes he didn't have to leave. "Thank you Trip, it was very helpful.

If possible his grin gets even bigger. "No problem."

She stands, lifting Kuvok with her and following him to the door. "I will call to reschedule our lunch when he's better."

"OKay, I look forward to it." Trip grins, pushing the door open and leaving the apartment.

T'Pol paces back across the living room towards the bedrooms, rubbing Kuvoks back all the way. She's suddenly quite tired as well, and looks down at her son and says. "Would you like to lay with me in bed?"

"Yes mother." Kuvok mutters, hooking his arms around her neck more tightly and closing his eyes.

T'Pol enters her bedroom and pulls back the blankets. She lays down, resting Kuvok over her chest like she used to when he was a baby and falls into a deep sleep.


	5. Cold Nostalgia

**I want to clear up a few things before going into this chapter. Several people have asked why T'Pol doesn't have Hoshi teach Avarak English, there's a couple reasons. The first being that Hoshi already has a job, and a new assignment, so she's not actually going to be around much longer. The second is that T'Pol has lost all contact with the other members of Enterprise at this point. Trip is the only one she has contact with and is really the only one she's interested in having contact with.**

 **Any how, the end of this chapter is really sweet and I'm really happy with how it went. We see T'Pol and Trip take what will hopefully be a positive step forward.**

 **I hope you like it and don't forget to leave a review because they more often then not make my day!**

 **\- Galia**

* * *

Chapter 5

 _I'll find repose in new ways_

 _Though I haven't slept in two days_

 _'Cause cold nostalgia chills me to the bone_

 _But drenched in vanilla twilight_

 _I'll sit on the front porch all night_

 _Waist deep in thought because when_

 _I think of you I don't feel so alone_

 _\- "Vanilla Twilight" By Owl City_

By Thursday Trip is starting to wonder if T'Pol is really going to call him at all, he's been waiting eagerly but after three days the worry that maybe she doesn't want to go to lunch with him starts to creep into his head. She seemed to like the idea on Friday when he'd asked but maybe she'd thought it over and decided against it.

It's with these thoughts that Trip gets out of bed, showers and walks out the door to head to work. Deciding against taking the bus in today he goes down to the parking garage to where he's parked his car and it's just as he's pulling out that his phone rings.

"Hello?" Trip says, hitting the answer button and putting it on speaker.

"Good morning Trip." T'Pol's voice says.

A wide grin spreads across Trip's face. "T'Pol, I was beginning to think you weren't gonna call."

"I apologize for the wait." T'Pol says. "Avarak came down with the cold as soon as Kuvok and I were better, but both are well today so I've taken them to school and day care. I was wondering if you were free for lunch?"

Trip turns out of the parking garage and onto the street, smiling all the while. "Course I am, you want to meet at the Eveleigh at noon then?"

"Certainly," T'Pol says, he hears honking in the background, she must be waiting on the bus. "I will see you at noon."

"I look forward to it." Trip grins, she hangs up and he's left the grinning idiot in his car.

The day seems to pass achingly slow, but he's in a good mood, so good even his students seem to notice it. Many of them ask what's gotten to him but he brushes it off and tells them to get back to working on the engines. Just before he's getting ready to leave for Lunch Hoshi stops in, she's due to leave for training tomorrow and they'd already said their goodbyes last night.

"Hey Hoshi, what brings you here?" Trip asks, putting the last of the tools in the locked.

"Well I heard a rumor that you're very happy this morning." She chuckles. "T'Pol finally call you back?"

"Yep." Trip grins. "I'm headin' to the Eveleigh right now."

"Good, I told you she'd call." Hoshi says. "Well have fun and good luck."

"It's not a date Hoshi." Trip says, picking up his wallet and keys and tucking them in his pockets.

"You want it to be." She says.

"Maybe." He mutters. "Okay yes, I'm hoping to take her on a real date this weekend, but right now I have to go or I'm going to be late to this date."

"Alright, have fun." Hoshi grins.

Trip grins back at her and starts towards the parking lot. Since he first saw her last week T'Pol has been on his mind and this lunch has been there too. He wonders if T'Pol will agree to an actual date with him on Saturday, she certainly seemed receptive to the idea of spending time with him.

When he arrives at the Eveleigh he's still got another 15 minutes before T'Pol is due to be there, so he goes up to the bar. He's been coming here since he was in STC and he knows the owner, Jack, well.

"Hey Trip," Jack grins. "What brings you in here on a work day?"

"I'm meetin' someone." Trip grins.

"It that Vulcan lady?" Jack asks. Having made a point to come here every time he was back on Earth Trip has told Jack a lot about T'Pol over the years.

Trip blushes a little bit. "It is yeah, she's back on Earth and we're meeting for lunch."

"Doesn't she have a husband?" Jack asks, drying some of the glasses and putting them on the rack

"She did," Trip says. "Divorced."

"Divorced huh? So you're takin' her on a date then?" His friend grins.

"Kind of, well - not really." TRip admits. "This is just a friendly lunch, but I'm hopin' she'll agree to a date this weekend."

"Have you ever had a woman say no?" Jack teases. Jack had been privy to the strings of girls Trip had 'dated' in STC, though Trip wasn't sure they really counted considering they were typically one night stands. Trip hadn't been interested in a long term relationship then, but things had changed.

"This is different." Trip says. "She's got two kids and I've been in love with her for seven years. I'm not just lookin' to get her in bed."

"Well that's a first." Jack teases. "How about the booth in the back then?" He points and Trip glances over his shoulder, it's out of the way and probably quieter than the rest of the bar at this time.

"Thanks Jack." Trip grins. "She'll be here in a few minutes, send her over when you see her yeah?"

"I will." Jack nods.

Trip crosses the bar to the booth in the back and sits down, nerves starting to settle in, what will it be like to have dinner with T'Pol again? He wasn't sure he counted their shared coffee from last week because he hadn't known if she'd be there and hadn't had much time to get nervous. Now he knew she was coming and he definitely had time to get nervous.

"What can I get for you sir?" the waitress' voice pulls him out of his thoughts.

"Oh um, sweet tea and peppermint tea if you have it." He says, thinking T'Pol will probably prefer that then the cold sweet tea he's partial too.

"Alright, I'll be back in a few minutes." The waitress smiles.

Trip check's his watch, it's noon exactly, glancing towards the door he doesn't see any sign of T'Pol. She's not usually late but he supposes she could be this time, maybe she had a busy day at work or something.

The drinks arrive a few minutes later and Trip is just looking at his watch again when the door chime signals someone entering, he looks up, T'Pol. He doesn't know why but seeing her in the blue starfleet uniform surprises him, she'd never worn it before but it looks good on her. Jack points her to the back where Trip is and Trip smiles as she starts towards the back.

* * *

T'Pol arrives a few minutes late, having to drop off records of Kuvok's flu vaccine had taken longer then she'd initially thought it would. The bartender seems to recognize her and points her to the back where Trip is seated, she makes her way back and sits down across from him.

"My apologies, I had to drop vaccine records at the daycare." She says, she notices the cup of tea in front of her and raises her eyebrows.

"It's fine," Trip says. "Oh, I ordered you some tea, peppermint, still your favorite yeah?"

"Yes I do still like peppermint." She says. "Thank you." She picks up the mug and takes a sip, it's hot but she doesn't mind.

"So the kids feeling better?" Trip asks.

"Yes, much better. I'm so sorry for having to cancel on Monday, I didn't think we'd get that sick, they usually don't." She explains, the waitress appears next to them.

"Are you ready to order?" She asks with a smile.

"Um, I am, what about you T'Pol?" TRip asks, T'Pol looks down at the menu, most everything contains meat of some sort.

"Do you have a vegetarian option?" T'Pol asks the waitress.

"We have a garden salad." The waitress says.

"I'll have that." T'Pol says closing the menu and handing it back to her.

"And you sir?" The waitress says, turning to Trip.

"Just a cheeseburger." Trip smiles, handing her the menu and looking back to T'Pol as the waitress walks away. "Sorry, I didn't realize they didn't have many vegetarian options.

"It's fine," T'Pol says. "I'm fairly used to a lack of vegetarian options."

"I'll do better next time." He smiles. "So kids are all healthy now?"

"Yes, Rakky wanted to stay home again today but I feel that has more to do with him not liking school then it does with him actually being sick." T'Pol explains.

Trip chuckles. "I'd bet it does, I'd've done just about anything to get out of school when I was a kid."

"He's not usually like this." T'Pol says quietly. "I think it's because of being picked on. I've got an appointment with his teacher after school today."

"Poor kid." Trip frowns. "Have you found a tutor for him?"

"Yes I did," T'Pol nods. "She doesn't speak Vulcan but has been teaching English as a second language for 10 years, she'll be meeting with him three times a week after school, but I need to speak with the teacher to ensure the bullying stops."

"Yeah you do, I can't believe any parents would allow their kids to act like that." Trip frowns.

"You'd be surprised." T'Pol mutters, she was all too aware that children -both human and Vulcan - could be cruel at time.

"You tried telling him to stand up for himself?" Trip asks.

"Yes," T'Pol says, moving back a little as the waitress returns with their food and sets it in front of them. "But he's not like Kuvok, Kuvok has never had any trouble standing up for himself, he can be a bit intense sometimes - not unlike me when I was a child. Avarak though, he's so timid, he's afraid of getting in trouble and having the other children be even meaner to him."

"In my experience it's usually the opposite." Trip says. "Kids usually stop if you stand up for yourself, teacher might not be too happy but if it's been goin' on this long then there really ain't much else for him to do."

"I've told him this," T'Pol says. "But he's still worried that the teacher doesn't like him and I don't think he wants to provoke anything, he's so much like Koss in that sense."

"Is he?" Trip says, taking a bite of his lunch.

"Yes he is." T'Pol says. "Koss never wanted to provoke incident when we were children."

"I thought you only met 4 times before the wedding." Trip frowns, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

"We did, but 2 of those meetings were when we were children." T'Pol says. "At our bonding ceremony, our families spent two days together, and at my father's funeral when I was 11. Both times he was rather timid. Avarak even looks like Koss."

"Does he?" Trip asks, T'Pol realizes Trip has never met Avarak, she reaches into her bag and pulls out a small photograph of the boys and hands it to him.

"Yes he does," T'Pol says. "The curls are Koss' too."

"Koss had curly hair?" Trip chuckles.

"When we were children he did." T'Pol says, Trip looks over the picture and hands it back, T'Pol tucks it back in her bag.

"Cute kid," Trip smiles. "Though I guess he's got pretty good genes."

"I suppose he does." T'Pol nods. "Though I wish he was a bit more confident."

"He'll get there." Trip assures.

The two of them spend the remainder of lunch discussing their old friends from Enterprise. T'Pol learns of Hoshi's position on the Intrepid, Travis' promotion to Commander, Malcolm's candidate for Captaincy and though she already knew Captain Archer was up for Admiral she did like hearing the story of his reaction to it. It wasn't entirely unexpected that he'd been both shocked and conflicted, she was never sure Captain Archer had thought of his career past being Captain.

The most interesting thing she learned however was of Phlox taking a fourth wife, Elizabeth Cutler, the two of them apparently had two small girls and a third child on the way. She'd never imagined Crewmen - now Doctor - Cutler being one of Phlox's wives, muchless living on Denobula.

After Trip paid for lunch - something he insisted on doing - she notices his demeanor changes slightly, from one of comfortable conversation to apprehension.

"So um," Trip says. "I was wondering what you were doing on Saturday evening?"

She raises her eyebrows. "If you mean what I usually do then probably putting the boys to bed and finishing my book. However if you mean set plans then nothing."

"Well I was um, I was wondering if you'd like to have dinner?" Trip asks.

"Dinner," T'Pol says. "You mean like one of those 'dates' humans often have?"

Trip chuckles and nods. "Yeah, a date. Saturday night, you and me."

T'Pol doesn't consider the offer but nods and says; "Yes, I would like that very much."

Trip breaks into a grin. "Really? Okay um, how about I'll pick you up at seven and we'll do dinner?"

"Seven works well, I'll find a sitter for the boys" She nods.

"Great, I'll um, I'll call you tomorrow and tell you where we'll go okay?" Trip asks. "I have to research vegetarian options a bit."

"Very well." She agrees. "I'll see you Saturday."

She leaves the restaurant feeling slightly apprehensive at the thought of a 'date' she's never been on one before, they're not a Vulcan custom and though she certainly likes the thought of one with Trip she hadn't really thought it through. She'd agreed without considering what it might mean for the boys, but what would be so different? THey'd been left with babysitters on Vulcan before, besides she doesn't plan on telling them of any relationship she has so early on.

She spends the remainder of her day thinking about this date and at the end of it decides it's a good thing she decided to go with Trip, she'd turned him down years ago and she didn't plan to do so without trying first this time.


	6. Kiss Me

**Okay so I'm a couple of days late for this one but there's a couple reasons for that. One being Friday was basically one hellish thing after another and another being that we have house guests. They leave today so I should be back on track for posting Friday again (unless we go down to Busan but if that happens I'll post Thursday instead)**

 **This chapter is a good bit longer then the previous ones and I think it's really cute so let me know if you agree! Reviews are always appreciated and they mean a lot!**

 **\- Galia**

* * *

Chapter 6

 _Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight_  
 _Lead me out on the moonlit floor_  
 _Lift your open hand_  
 _Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance_  
 _Silver moon's sparkling_  
 _So kiss me_

 _-"Kiss Me" Sixpence None The Richer_

Saturday doesn't come soon enough for Trip, he'd made reservations at a little restaurant on the water almost as soon as he left lunch on Thursday with T'Pol. It's got the best reviews of any of the vegetarian restaurants he'd been able to find and it had a view of the beach.

Trip is ready to go nearly an hour before he has to leave, he doesn't want to show up early though so he sits on the couch until 6:45, trying to watch a movie but isn't really paying attention to it. At 6:45 he gets up, grabs his wallet and keys and heads down to his car, as he's driving towards her apartment he starts to get nervous, though it's completely ridiculous that he is, it's T'Pol, he knows T'Pol.

"Just a moment!" T'Pol calls through the door after he knocks, he can hear her talking to one of the boys and then she answers.

"Evenin'" Trip grins.

"Good evening, come in, I'll be ready in a moment I'm just trying to settle Avarak." T'Pol says, motioning him in. A teenage girl sits on her couch playing a game with the younger son, the boy in T'Pol's arms must be Avarak. Trip doesn't remember much about Koss but T'Pol is right, Avarak doesn't resemble her.

"It's fine." Trip smiles, waving to the little boy. The child wraps his arms around his mother's neck and mutters something in Vulcan. T'Pol kneels and pries Avarak off of her neck, holding him at arms length she speaks to him in Vulcan for few minutes. Avarak doesn't seem very happy about it but he walks over to the couch and sits next to the babysitter.

"We'll be back around, 11?" T'Pol says to the baby sitter but glances at Trip, he nods. "Eleven, they need to be in bed at 7:30," She says turning back to the babysitter.

"Yes Ma'am." The girl says. "We'll call if we need anything."

"Thank you, the emergency numbers are on the fridge and my phone number is on the counter." T'Pol says, turning to Trip.

"Ready?" Trip smiles.

"...yes." T'Pol says, sparing the boys a glance, clearly she's nervous to leave them but she slips her shoes on and follows Trip out the door. "I'm sorry, I've never left them with a sitter here before."

"They'll be fine." Trip assures, reaching for her hand. T'Pol looks at him shocked and he lets go. "Sorry - forgot about the hand thing."

T'Pol reaches out touches his hand lightly before letting her arm fall back to her side. "It's fine, but yes I'm certain both boys will be alright. I simply worry Avarak won't go to sleep if I'm not there."

"Can he stay up?" Trip asks.

"He shouldn't, but I did leave instructions if they didn't sleep." T'Pol says, stepping into the elevator. "She's to read to them quietly on my bed, it should put them to sleep eventually."

"Do they sleep with you?" Trip asks, he's never much liked the thought of kids in the bed, but he wonders about the Vulcan idea of it. He knows contact with their children is very important but how this translates in everyday life he's not sure.

"They do more since the move," T'Pol explains. "Usually they sleep in their own bedrooms after the first year but since the divorce and moving here I've been more lenient than normal. I know they both have a good deal of anxiety about being alone lately."

"Well they'll get there, best to make them feel secure first I guess." Trip shrugs. "I don't know that I'd like to share my bed though."

"I remember how you feel about the bed." T'Pol says.

"Hey now, what's that supposed to mean?" Trip grins, stepping out of the elevator and turning towards the car.

"You like to spread out and steal all the blankets." T'pol raises her eyebrows. "And I don't believe that will have changed in 6 years."

"Well maybe it has." Trip grins.

"Has it?" T'Pol asks, pulling the passenger side door open.

"Nope." Trip slides into the driver's seat and grins across at her.

"I thought so." T'Pol mutters, fastening her seatbelt and looking at him.

"You okay?" Trip asks, pulling out of the parking spot.

"Yes," T'Pol says. "I just never thought we'd be here."

"What do ya mean?" Trip frowns, glancing at her.

"I never thought we'd be… courting?"

"Dating."

"Dating, and I would have two children from a previous marriage while we did it." T'Pol muses. "I love them, but I'm not sure how they'll handle this."

"We don't have to tell them." Trip points out. "I mean they're pretty young T'Pol, I doubt they'd even understand what was going on."

"I know," T'Pol says. "And they won't understand but I worry how this would effect them if it doesn't work out. How long do you think we should wait until we tell them?"

"Well," Trip says, reading over and putting a hand on her knee. "How about we wait and see how this goes? If it looks like it's goin' to be somethin' serious then we tell 'em, but if it doesn't work out or doesn't go anywhere then we haven't told them and gotten their hopes up about anything."

"That sounds like a reasonable idea." T'Pol nods. "And you're alright if we wait a while to tell them?"

"T'Pol," Trip says, giving her a look. "They're not my kids, they're your kids and you know what's best for them and if you think it's best that we wait three months, six months, nine months or more to tell them then I'm okay with that."

"Thank you," T'Pol says.

The rest of the ride is spent mostly in silence, Trip can tell T'Pol is still worried about the boys even when they arrive at the restaurant 20 minutes later. They get their seats on the balcony, and Trip is surprised when T'Pol also orders a glass of wine.

"Thought you didn't drink." He says.

"I don't drink often, even on Enterprise I had the occasional glass of wine." T'Pol says.

"Well I can understand why. You're still worried about them." It's not a question, he can tell she is. To other she seems emotion less, and collected, but he can sense the worry brewing just under the surface.

"It's Avarak." She says. "He's still upset I've left. I know he'll calm down but I can feel his worry."

"You can feel it?" Trip frowns.

"Yes," T'pol nods. "Vulcan parents have a very special bond with their children, we're linked, I can feel his emotions and he can feel mine."

"He can feel yours? Doesn't that make it kinda hard to calm him down sometimes?" Trip frowns.

"No," T'pol says, taking the glass of wine from the waiter. "I can block my emotions from him, but he's not old enough to have learned the control necessary to block his from me."

"That's kinda strange." Trip admits. "But I guess it makes it easier when they can't talk."

"It does," T'Pol says, sipping the wine and setting the glass down. "Vulcan children don't learn to talk until 2 and a half or 3 years of age anyway and when they do they begin speaking in full sentences, but they can communicate through touch telepathy and emotional projection before they learn to speak."

"That's kinda strange to think about." Trip chuckles. "Human kids are talking by 2 and a half, hell I was talkin' by 18 months. I can't imagine being touched and hearing everything your toddler thinks and feels."

"It's odd to a human," T'Pol points out. "But for a Vulcan it's completely normal, the thought of a child as young as a year and a half speaking is very strange to me."

"Fair enough." Trip chuckles. "So how are you adjusting to your new job?"

"I admit I don't care for teaching." T'pol says. "However, it gives me the flexibility to be there for my children when they need me. When they get older I'd like to take a position on a ship again."

"Really?" Trip says surprised.

"Yes, though they'd be at least 20 before that happens, I'm hoping once Kuvok is school age I an at least work in a lab and send him and Avarak to classes and activities after school." T'Pol explains. "Teaching isn't something I'd like to do long term."

"I don't mind it." Trip shrugs. "I'm not really looking for my own ship though."

"I don't necessarily want to be Captain, but a few months on a ship every now and then would be nice." T'Pol admits.

"You'd make a good Captain though." Trip points out.

"Perhaps, but the children would have to be out of the house for me to be gone that long." T'Pol points out.

Dinner passes in much the same way, with them talking about work and what they've been up to. After dinner Trip pays the bill and suggests they go to walk on the beach a while. T'Pol seems hesitant but as it's only 9 o'clock agrees.

* * *

T'Pol had never felt the most comfortable around water and the closer to the ocean Trip pulls her the more concerned she gets. Finally she stops walking and looks at him.

"I think perhaps we should stay up here." She says.

"Why?" Trip frowns.

"I do not like water." T'Pol admits.

"You take baths." He points out.

"That's not much water," She looks out at the ocean. "Vulcan has only one large body of water and we tend to avoid it."

"So no swimming then?" Trip grins jokingly at her.

"No," T'Pol purses her lips and gives him a look. "Trip, I can't swim and I don't wish to get any closer."

"Okay," He says, reaching for her hand and returning to her side. This time she lets him hold it, it's warm and calming. "We can walk up here if you want.

"Thank you." T'pol says quietly. Starting along the sand with Trip, she can feel grains of sand getting into her shoes, it's not the most comfortable feeling but Trip doesn't seem bothered by it so she doesn't bring it up.

"It's beautiful night." Trip smiles.

"I suppose." She nods, "A bit chilly though." She was glad she'd brought her sweater along but it's still chilly for her.

"We can go back if you want." Trip offers.

"I don't mind staying a while longer, though I would like to get back a bit early. The children still aren't in bed." She says, she can feel their thoughts whirling around still and gets the distinct feeling they're bothering the babysitter.

"Why don't we head back then?" Trip suggests. "We don't want them up too late."

"Alright." T'Pol agrees though she's reluctant to leave early, she's missed spending time with him and feels that it's going well, Trip's eagerness to get back almost disappoints her but she pushes it back and walks with him up to the car.

"They behaving at least?" Trip asks.

"I can't tell," T'Pol says. "Though I doubt it, they can be troublesome children when they decide to work together."

"Tiny troublemakers." Trip chuckles. "I'd've never pegged your kids as tiny troublemakers."

"I was a 'tiny troublemaker' as a child." T'Pol informs him. "But having two of them makes it a bit more then a sixteen year old human should have to handle."

Trip chuckles. "I suppose that's true, damn cute kids though."

"Well I think so." T'Pol muses.

T'Pol isn't surprised to discover that she was right, upon returning home she can hear both boys running through the apartment and the babysitter trying to catch them. She opens the door and Avarak immediately flies into her legs.

"Mother I don't want her to put me to bed!" He insists.

"Avarak," T'Pol kneels down to him. "I told you to listen to the babysitter, as you are not listening I will be putting you to bed right now and you're not getting a story read. Kuvok, the same applies to you."

"Mother." Both boys whine in unison.

"Bed, go." T'Pol says firmly before turning to the babysitter. "My apologies, I did not anticipate they would be this difficult."

"Oh, it's fine Ma'am." The sitter says, brushing some loose hair out of her face.

T'Pol pulls some money from her wallet and holds it out to the sitter. "Thank you very much for watching them, you may go." The sitter collects her things and hurries out the door, T'Pol turns to Trip. "I need to get the boys in bed, I'll be right back."

"It's fine." Trip assures. "I'll wait here."

T'Pol grabs Avarak and Kuvok by the hand and pulls them both after her. "You both need to be better about listening to the baby sitter, when she says bedtime it's bedtime."

"Mother, but we couldn't understand her." Avarak pouts.

"Yeah didn't understand." Kuvok giggles.

"Kuvok, Avarak, you know what she meant, I left the cards for her with the Vulcan on them, you did not listen." She reaches into the pajama drawer and hands them each a set of pajamas. "Put them on and get in bed."

"Mother!" They whine.

"Do not whine, it's not good behavior." T'pol scolds, each boy reluctantly puts his pajamas on and climbs in bed, T'Pol tucks them in and kisses them each on the head. "Goodnight children."

"Goodnight mother." Each of them mutters.

T'Pol exits their bedroom and finds Trip still standing in the living room. "I'm sorry." T'pol apologizes. "They should be in bed now, they don't usually behave like that."

"It's fine." Trip grins. "I know what it's like bein' a little boy left with a babysitter, any opportunity to misbehave will be taken."

"They're really not like that - usually, it seems since the move they've changed a good deal." T'Pol doesn't pretend that it doesn't worry her that they've changed so much. "I think they're just testing boundaries so I'm trying to reinforce them at every opportunity but they persist."

"Something's are the same all over the galaxy." Trip chuckles. "And little boys seem to be one of them."

"I shudder to think of you as a little boy." T'Pol says.

"Oh you should, you should." Trip laughs. "So um, I was thinkin' maybe next weekend we could take the boys to the beach?"

"I thought you were okay with not telling them about our relationship?" T'Pol says, caught off guard by this suggestion.

"I am, I am." Trip says hurriedly. "I was just thinkin', they've probably never been right?"

"Correct, and I dont' like the idea of them around so much water." T'Pol says.

"Well, we can pack a lunch, have a picnic on the beach. They don't have to go near the water if you don't want them to." Trip assures.

"What if they want to? They'll see other children in the water." T'Pol points out.

"Then I'll take them to get their feet wet." Trip says. "But no swimming, just a picnic and feeding the seagulls."

"Feeding the seagulls?" T'Pol says, she'd been under the impression that seagulls were essentially just flying rats.

"Yeah, my sister and I used to love it when we were about their age." Trip grins.

"Well," T'Pol considers. "I suppose the beach isn't a terrible idea and Avarak will enjoy the birds."

"Is that a yes?" Trip asks, his grin widening.

"I suppose, but you have to promise me there will be no swimming." T'Pol says.

"I promise." Trip says. "So I'll call you tomorrow and we can work out the details and then I'll see you Saturday?"

"Yes, you'll see us Saturday." T'Pol says, following him to the door way.

Before he leaves he turns and kisses her, it's soft and gentle. "Night T'Pol."

"Good night Trip." She says, watching him leave.

She walks into the kitchen and puts the kettle on, she knew it was human custom to kiss after a date but she felt a little strange about it, though not for the reason she'd though. It didn't feel wrong, or out of place, quite the opposite, it felt right.

Pouring a cup of lavender tea she walks over to the couch and sits down to contemplate the events of the evening. She'd been able to relax about half way through the meal and had discovered just how much she'd missed spending time with him. Vulcans didn't often miss people and as she sits on the couch turning the last six years over in her head and it dawns on her; she'd never once missed Koss when he was away. Not when she was pregnant - he wasn't even present for the births of their children and she hadn't missed him then - not when he was away on business (which she later discovered to be his affair) and certainly not after the divorce. She had fallen back into a relationship with Trip as naturally as if she'd been there all along.

Draining the last of her tea and realizing she'll never sleep if she continues comparing her relationship with Koss to her potential relationship with Trip she pushes these thoughts from her head and walks into the bedroom. Tonight her bed is free of children and she's thankful for it, slipping into her pajamas and into her bed she lays on her side and is asleep only minutes after turning out the light.


End file.
